The Bullet of Discovery: Post-Modern Virtual Reality or God’s Reality
I see the fake irrelevance and pretense of our culture all around us. Columnist Suzanne Fields has expressed it beautifully: “Television dramas, talk-show celebrities, news anchors all create a synthetic sense of community. Common references require no time-consuming obligations, no icky closeness. It’s less important that we live vicariously than that we feel vicariously, a post-modern virtue. It’s no coincidence that the only show that exceeds Seinfield in popularity is ER. It creates urgency, the modern version of the tragic idea that, “there but for the grace of God go I.” It helps us to think ahead at a faster pace … we get to feel someone else’s pain-painlessly.” In modern American Christianity, the emphasis is almost totally on what we feel rather than what we are to be in Christ!
The Lord is shaking many of His people so that our attention will be drawn to first realities. Pray that a remnant of us will opt for His peace and calmness in the chaos of this “fast-forward” world.
One of my favorite hymns from college expresses my own heart’s desire. My prayer is similar for Christians everywhere:
Since my eyes were fixed on Jesus,
I’ve lost sight of all beside,
So enchained my spirit’s vision,
Looking at the Crucified.
I see the fake irrelevance and pretense of our culture all around us. Columnist Suzanne Fields has expressed it beautifully: “Television dramas, talk-show celebrities, news anchors all create a synthetic sense of community. Common references require no time-consuming obligations, no icky closeness. It’s less important that we live vicariously than that we feel vicariously, a post-modern virtue. It’s no coincidence that the only show that exceeds Seinfield in popularity is ER. It creates urgency, the modern version of the tragic idea that, “there but for the grace of God go I.” It helps us to think ahead at a faster pace … we get to feel someone else’s pain-painlessly.” In modern American Christianity, the emphasis is almost totally on what we feel rather than what we are to be in Christ!
The Lord is shaking many of His people so that our attention will be drawn to first realities. Pray that a remnant of us will opt for His peace and calmness in the chaos of this “fast-forward” world.
One of my favorite hymns from college expresses my own heart’s desire. My prayer is similar for Christians everywhere:
Since my eyes were fixed on Jesus,
I’ve lost sight of all beside,
So enchained my spirit’s vision,
Looking at the Crucified.
(All for Jesus by Mary James: the beautiful melody I like is from The Crucifixion, by John Stainer. To hear it click on the link to it on this All for Jesus Page.)
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